When the Big 12 took a major step toward expansion last week, there was plenty of surprise expressed by followers of the league.
Unless, that is, you've followed WVU President E. Gordon Gee.
One of three members of the Big 12's preparatory "Composition Committee," Gee has always been a proponent of expansion. Ditto one of the other members, Oklahoma's David Boren. (The committee has now transitioned to the presidents as a whole.)
In the past, we've heard much from Boren. On Monday, however, Gee took a call and discussed the recent Big 12 developments, including the move to accept expansion applications from schools as well as how the league is handling the process.
First, however, he was generally asked to characterize the recent meetings.
"I'd characterize them as very progressive and very positive," Gee said. "We all realize there are multiple points of view. [Possible expansion] is a complex issue. I think that looking at the next step forward is positive."
Interestingly, Gee pointed to the fashion in which the Big 12 is handling expansion. And it should strike a chord with WVU fans that once observed their team's former league, the Big East, get picked apart by the Atlantic Coast Conference.
"We've done it this way because we didn't want to be viewed as predators," Gee said. "We didn't want to be seen as poachers of other conferences. We wanted to make sure schools would approach us so we'd have clarity on their interest."
Somewhere ex-Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese, who once claimed the ACC tried to "dismember" the league by "ripping [its] heart" out, is taking note.
"I wasn't a part of that, but there was a lot of poaching going on and we don't want to be part of that," Gee said. "We don't want to be part of league dismemberment, so to speak."
What the Big 12 does wish to be part of, however, is a conference network deal - just not necessarily like the ones currently in place. Gee was asked if the ACC Network deal with ESPN, set to start in 2019, was impetus for action last week.
"We'd been talking about it for some time, but that was a piece of information that occurred early in the day of our meeting," Gee said. "I would not say it was everything. We knew they were working on something. We've all been working of different variations of something.
"I want the ACC to do well. I want all the conferences to do well. I just want to make certain we are clearly delineating our own route."
He deferred questions on options to Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby, but did reply when asked about Texas' stance on its Longhorn Network.
"My view is we didn't really address that issue directly, but one of the things we're very interested in is a new kind of platform," Gee said. "One can make an argument that in three or four years we're going to be moving away from the traditional kind of [conference] networks. Frankly, from my point of view - and many points of view - I think that's where we're heading."
So will the Big 12 move to 12 or 14 schools?
"I'm not going to speculate," Gee said. "I've always been very bullish on expansion. But I want to make sure we get the right teams with the right cultures. If there's 12, that's great. If there's 14, that's great. But I want to make sure we do it right - and get the right group of people together."
The next step in expansion apparently falls to Bowlsby and his staff.
"I think the commissioner will be doing his due diligence between now and our next scheduled meeting, which I think is in October," Gee said. "I suspect he'll be prepared to discuss recommendations with us then."
The list of expansion candidates is long. Gee, a Mormon, would almost certainly support BYU, a school he grew up near in Utah. The WVU fanbase would probably like to see nearby Cincinnati included. Connecticut offers a gateway to the New York television market.
A darkhorse emerging is Tulane, which some envision as the Big 12's answer to Vanderbilt of the SEC or Northwestern of the Big Ten. Tulane has been rated one of the nation's Top 50 academic institutions by some.
Others mentioned include Memphis, Central Florida, South Florida and Colorado State. The latter will have a new stadium in 2017 and promises to deliver the Denver TV market. USF, however, has recently been accused of academic fraud.
Then there's Houston, which has reportedly landed the support of Texas President Greg Fenves via Twitter.
"Houston is a very fine institution," Gee said. "I know the leadership there and it has one of the best football coaches in America in Tom Herman. So I'm not surprised. I think what [Fenves] indicated, though, is he wouldn't be opposed."
Fenves' complete tweet was this: "As we look at opportunities for Big 12 expansion, I support considering @UHouston for the conference. UH is a huge asset for Texas."
On the other hand, Iowa State President Steven Leath expressed consternation over the Cougars to the Ames Tribune in Iowa.
"They certainly have a lot of factors we are interested in," Leath said. "I feel a lot of the [Big 12] presidents feel the league is Texas-heavy already, which helps with the Texas schools, but it's a little problematic for the rest of us to go from the very northern part of the league like us to the very southern part of the league."
Gee said he understands the point.
"I think we certainly should have a national base, absolutely," said the WVU president. "But we also have to recognize there are some wonderful institutions in Texas. We have four now in the conference and I think we will consider that as part of the overall package we are putting together."